Plenty is going on right now in our industry, our country, and our world. We have a voracious appetite for front-page headlines and a news media that creates the news—sometimes more than it reports it! If you think the headlines are shocking, you're right; they are intended to be.
We also lead the country in some bold political initiatives. Massachusetts (MA) has long desired to lead in “Green” initiatives, goals, and regulations. We are even outstripping California in our efforts to rush to net-zero new construction. The houses most of us grew up in, even those built in the 1990s, like the one I live in, seemed relatively tight and high-performing compared to earlier homes. However, in terms of a HERS rating, my 1992 house might only achieve a score of around 140. As of July 1, 2024, we enter the next level of the energy code, essentially requiring a HERS rating of 42! The ultimate target is a HERS rating of zero, which is why “Net Zero” is such a popular term.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has also put policy into effect to prohibit the purchase of any fossil fuel-powered vehicles (gas, diesel, propane) in the state by 2035. These are huge changes.
Government approaches change a bit differently than private industry. In private industry, we establish a goal, plan a means to achieve it, and measure our progress along a timeline. In government, it is perfectly okay to set a goal, however ambitious, without a clear plan, budget, or strategy to achieve it—and simply force the result, whether it makes sense or not. Sometimes this works. For example, in the early 1960s, JFK boldly predicted that we would put a man on the moon by the end of the decade. It was such an audacious goal that it took the breath away from NASA engineers tasked with achieving it. In interviews from that time, they admitted they had no idea how they were going to pull it off, with no clear budget or even a feasible plan. The magic of the moon landing was that it became a matter of national pride, a race to beat the Russians, and somehow, we pulled off that impossible challenge in 1969.
The race to net-zero is also an audacious challenge. The difference is that it affects all of us directly, in ways the space race didn’t. We are already severely challenged with housing affordability, and the upcoming energy regulations are driving housing costs even higher. These regulations are coming quickly, and there are many unintended consequences and unanswered questions, such as issues with house ventilation, moisture control, and indoor air quality. There are conflicts that don't have solutions on the horizon. For example, if we're working so hard to ban the use of fossil fuels in favor of electric for heating, cooling, cooking, and vehicle power, why can't the electric utilities keep up with current demand (61% of the electricity we use today is generated by fossil fuels)? Yet, we are forcing even more electrical demand onto them.
Although the Commonwealth would love to see all heavy trucks powered by electricity or hydrogen, there are no commercially available heavy trucks for sale in MA, and there is no charging infrastructure for electric or hydrogen supply. Yet, MA has a law that requires no new diesel-powered Class 8 trucks (33,000 lb Gross Vehicle Weight or higher) to be sold unless an equivalent electric or hydrogen-powered heavy truck is sold along with it. The problem is, nothing is available on the market in terms of electric or hydrogen-powered trucks. Nikola, one of the leading EV truck manufacturers, just filed for bankruptcy, and the electric truck concept isn’t feasible yet. But the law won’t allow the purchase of a new diesel truck without also buying an alternative vehicle that we can't even order or operate. By the way, everything we eat, wear, sit on, or work with is delivered by diesel-powered trucks.
The utilities say the grid isn’t ready, yet towns like Brookline have already banned fossil fuel use in new construction. Ironically, utilities also claim they can’t even accept all the power homeowners want to generate from new rooftop solar arrays. There are caps on renewable solar energy because the grid can’t handle more than 15 kW per house in areas like Hyannis.
Since these energy challenges are so big, complicated, and widespread, no single person or entity can handle them alone. We need the power of organization to be heard, and we need a louder collective voice. This is where our Home Builders and Remodelers Association (HBRA) comes in. Our local Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Cape Cod (HBRAMA), our state organization, Home Builders and Remodelers of MA (HBRAMA), and our national organization, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), are all part of your membership in the local HBRAMA. If you're not a member already, here’s how easy it is to join: Become a Member - Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Massachusetts. If you'd like to charge your membership to your Shepley account or spread the payment over three monthly installments with no interest, just email John Hoell, our Sales Operations Manager, at jhoell@shepleywood.com. John will get you set up. For first-time members, Shepley will contribute $125 towards your first-year membership to show how important we believe it is.
A great example of the power of a unified voice is when our Association successfully lobbied Governor Baker to classify us as an essential industry, so we weren’t completely shut down during COVID. More recently, we got towns to agree that adopting the stretch energy code could no longer be done behind closed doors—it must be done through public hearings and votes. Now we are lobbying hard against the potential inflationary effects of tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber, steel, and aluminum. We need our voice to be heard on Beacon Hill, at the State House, and in Washington. We need to support our representatives politically and financially.
Last year’s State Home Builders President, Mike Duffany, is a Cape Codder, as is State Secretary and Treasurer Matt Teague. Matt came up with an idea that we at Shepley support: To fund the political efforts we need to be making in Boston, would you agree to contribute $1 for each invoice you buy from us to HBRAMA? Shepley will match your pledge, bill your account at the end of each month, and contribute the total to HBRAMA. It’s not a heavy lift, but it’s a very important one. We need a presence at the State House, and we need our legislative team to stay informed and act quickly on new developments that are coming fast and furious. If you agree, we’ll take care of the rest. We call it Dollars for Change. Just email me at tshepley@shepleywood.com, and we'll get you signed up for the program.
"The only limit to our realization of tomorrow is our doubts of today."– Franklin D. Roosevelt